HeritageWest CU Responds to Ex-Mayor’s Skimming Charges

The $330 million HeritageWest Credit Union said it was an innocent victim in a case involving an equity skimming scheme.

Eric A. Richardson, the former mayor of Cedar Hills in Utah, pleaded guilty this week to one count of felony bank fraud for his role in an auto loan application skimming case.

According to the U.S. District Court for Utah, Richardson allegedly defrauded the HeritageWest in Tooele, Utah, by helping people to submit vehicle loan applications containing false information. Some of the funds approved were then skimmed for other uses.

Richardson resigned as mayor of Cedar Hills on June 25.

“HeritageWest has cooperated fully with this investigation and we are pleased to hear that Mr. Richardson has accepted responsibility for his actions,” said Bruce Bryan, HeritageWest regional president, in a statement to Credit Union Times. “Our members should be assured that HeritageWest was an innocent victim in this scam, and that the credit union suffered no financial loss.”

Richardson is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov.14.

HeritageWest is a division of the $2 billion Chartway Federal Credit Union of Virginia Beach, Va., which merged the Utah institution in January 2010.